Some law firms are reacting to the COVID-19 shutdown with layoffs, pay cuts and furloughs. Others have upped their game with intensive outreach efforts, trumpeting the myriad legal issues on which they can help during this social and economic upheaval. Are they seizing opportunities or distastefully capitalizing on a global crisis?
Only time will tell whether this rush towards marketing will reap rewards. However, a firm’s ability to embrace the moment, provide much-needed information in real time and adapt quickly to new conditions are key attributes that clients look for in their legal representatives.
The law firms increasing their business development activity now are taking advantage of several conditions. Because lawyers are constrained from meeting with clients and attending networking events, they have more time to devote to non-billable activities.
Additionally, the unprecedented nature of the pandemic opens up a vast array of questions for which companies, individuals, media and other stakeholders need immediate answers. Many see an opportunity to establish one’s credentials in a specific niche by leaping on the client alert bandwagon, or giving a webinar from one’s home office.
CMOs everywhere are striving to develop strategies to communicate with clients without seeming mercenary while responding to management’s directive to get messaging out ahead of the competition.
This can be especially challenging when government guidance appears to change daily.
In the immediate aftermath of the shutdown, lawyers responded issuing messages of hope, reassurance and concern. Most law firms followed suit because failing to do so might imply inhumanity. In addition to the message of caring, these emails carried the subliminal message that the firm was open for business and still functioning, even if their entire staffs were working remotely.
After an initial expression of compassion, though, effective messaging should pivot towards action. The most effective law firm communications demonstrate that a team possesses critical knowledge on pressing issues of the day. Clients need answers and our firm can answer questions like do I need to pay rent? Do I need to go to work if my employer tells me I am essential?
Simultaneously, a law firm must distinguish itself amidst a flood of competing information. Volume may not always suffice. While it is tempting to issue multiple client alerts per day from practice groups, or hold impromptu webinars, this approach can turn people off.
Now is not the time for strategic content management plans to go out the window. Firms must be mindful of sending identical-sounding messaging to overlapping lists (how many alerts begin with the phrase: “In this unprecedented situation…”).
There’s no faster way to receive opt-outs of your firm’s digital communications than by spamming your clients’ inboxes with news that does not pertain to them or is inappropriate for their needs.
Judicious use of CRM helps target potential clients with what they need to know. If your firm has not yet established an effective CRM system with updated lists, set these processes in place.
While rapid response is important, it can result in communications that become quickly outdated or are even wrong. For example, in the race to be first to address the details of the stimulus package, some firms erred in reporting crucial details (usually because they were not included in the government communications themselves).
The most effective communications from law firms hew closely to their brands. Global practices can address antitrust and trade issue concerns as they affect their clients; national/regional firms should focus on their communities. Attempts to reach too broad an audience can falter: one client observed after checking a law firm’s international infographics that if he wanted to understand the effect of the virus on Italy, he could turn on the news.
The best email marketing strategies accomplish several objectives:
- Address the specific questions your clients ask
- Send only information pertinent to each client
- Make information easy to find and follow
- Encourage clients to reach out and contact individual lawyers: nurture those relationships!
Also, don’t forget about internal communications now. One managing partner of a mid-sized firm holds weekly Zoom conference calls with all employees, lawyers and staff alike, providing morale boosting information and consistent contact to reassure the uneasy. Another sends out weekly internal emails highlighting firm accomplishments during this tough time.
This crisis is already winnowing the market, with several firms announcing cuts in staff and budgets. However, those who prove to be nimble at adapting to the new marketplace may find that their services are in greater need than ever. Maintaining an agile marketing strategy can position the firm as a bulwark in times of change and a reliable authority on pressing legal issues for its client base.
The best law firm marketing efforts in bad times resemble those in good times: anticipate clients’ concerns and show how the firm can help.
Susan Peters is the founder of Greybridge PR, a communications and media relations agency focused on law firms and professional services clients.